The problem is not whether the bride should keep her last name or not. The problem is the timing of the survey.  The survey took place during severe economic times. This is important because during tough times, people tend to get back to basics, familiarity if you will. In today's society it's more basic, more familiar, for the bride to take her husbands last name. Everything today is "back to basics". The divorce rate is down..affairs are down, and we're more of a "family unit" than in years past.  Trust me, when the economic climate is once again rosy, Americans will  be more adventurous. Brides will start keeping their last name..the divorce rate will increase dramatically, people will be several thousands of dollars in debt again, and yes girls, your man will be chasing his secretary around the desk once more. All will be back to normal.

Julia Levine Rogers thinks of herself as a "strong modern woman," who at 27 has worked in health clinics in Africa and started her own travel business for students.

But when she married Tom Rogers last August in Stowe, Vt., she took his name, even though her own mother had refused to change hers in 1977.

"Choosing to take Tom's name was not a decision I came to lightly," said Rogers, who founded EnRoute Consulting. "I thought a lot about the implications of changing my name, especially since my mother chose to keep her maiden name. I wondered for a while if I was wrongly giving up my identity for an archaic tradition."

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